Elemental
by InfamousAuthor7
Summary: "Do not pretend you do not understand. As children, I could see the way you looked at my brother. You loved him." Even as a little girl I had been in love with Loki. I had not seen him in years but I did not imagine my feelings would change. I had never been able to forget the young boy who had stolen my heart.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

I was running across the bifrost faster than I ever thought it was possible to move. I was holding the front of my dress in a death grip, trying desperately not to trip over the long, billowing fabric.

"Thank you, Heimdall," I called over my shoulder.

"Good luck, my dear." His booming laugh echoed over the bridge.

I was late. _Extremely _late. And if I remembered correctly there was nothing that The King hated more than to be kept waiting.

It had been many years since I had set foot on Asgardian soil. I had left- vanished, really- when I was just a child. I was beyond shocked that The King had managed to find me after all these years and I was even more surprised that he requested my presence at The Palace.

Finally, I could make out the end of the bifrost and the silhouette of a guard waiting for me. I had almost forgotten that The King was sending an escort for me. Struggling to hold my dress in one hand, I used the other to force the hood of my cloak up to cover my face. I was not ready to reveal myself to anyone yet. When the figure was only a few feet in front of me, I slowed to a walk, making sure I kept my head bent and low.

"You are late. The King has many important engagements and does not like to be kept waiting," The man's voice was loud and rough, the ground practically shaking as he spoke. It seemed strangely familiar.

Carefully, as to not reveal my face, I peaked out from underneath my hood.

"Thor?" I gasped. I quickly realized my mistake and dipped my head back down, "I mean, my apologies, Prince Thor, my tardiness will not be a problem again." I tried to keep my voice steady. I could not believe The King had sent Thor as my escort.

"Remove your hood." Thor ordered.

"Sir, I do not think-"

"I said, remove your hood."

I flinched. I had heard Thor speak to many people that way but I had never been one of them.

I took a deep breath. I knew well enough to know to not refuse an order given by the future king.

Slowly, I lifted my hood, revealing myself to The Prince. I craned my neck to see his face.

It took a few seconds for him to recognize me. I watched as his face changed from surprise, to a brief glimmer of happiness, then quickly to anger, and lastly confusion mixed with a little hurt.

"Ember?" He whispered, his voice hesitant and timid. Not at all what I was used to from him.

I nodded, "It is nice to see you again, Prince Thor."

"I thought…we all thought…you were dead." He stuttered as he spoke.

I cringed at the pain in his voice, "I am sorry to have fooled you in such a way. My intention was not to cause you pain."

"Why did you leave then?"

"I had my reasons."

"You will not tell me?"

"Not yet."

"I thought we were best friends." I recoiled at the sudden harshness in his voice. I could see the pain my disappearance still caused him. As children, Thor and I had been inseparable. Not a day went by that the two of us were not together. We were two halves of a perfect whole.

"I am truly, Prince Thor."

"Stop calling me that," He snapped, causing me to jump, "You did not refer to me as that when we were children, do not do it now." His voice was laced with anger, which I could not blame.

"I never wanted to leave," I whispered, "but it was something that I had to do."

"What was caused your sudden return?"

"The King summoned me."

"How long will you be staying?"

"I do not yet know."

"Will you say goodbye this time?"

I forced the memory of the day I had to leave away. I had not been allowed to tell Thor goodbye; that had been the most painful part of leaving.

"Of course." I said, not knowing if it would be true.

It did not seem like he believed it either.

"Come. Father grows impatient quickly." He turned and started walking towards the Palace.

I flipped the hood back up and ran after him.

I was glad to see that Asgard had hardly changed. The path we were following was so familiar that I probably could have found the Palace without Thor. I was thankful I had not entirely forgotten my home.

"Do you know why The King has requested my presence?" I asked struggling to keep up with Thor's thunderous pace.

"I did not know you were even alive," Thor growled, "How am I to know what Father requires of you?"

I sighed, "I understand where your anger comes from but do you have to be so cold? Whether you like it or not I was forced to leave and whether you like it or not I have returned. I am not asking for your forgiveness just yet, I am simply asking for to understand that everything that has happened has been out of my control. If it had been my decision I never would have left Asgard. I never would have left you."

For a minute Thor did not speak and I feared that I had angered him more.

"You are right to not as for my forgiveness just yet," He finally said, "But I am more relieved that you have returned to Asgard alive and well."

"Thank you."

"And maybe, in time, we shall be best friends again." He turned to me and gave me his infamous grin. It had been too long since I had seen him smile.

"Maybe." I smiled back.

We walked the rest of the path in silence.

When the Palace was finally in my view I turned to Thor, grinning again, "Will Loki be there too?"

Even though Thor was undeniably my greatest friend, Loki had been a huge part of my childhood. The three of us had spent our early years playing, laughing, and getting into trouble together.

Thor let out a low chuckle, "I see that some things do not change."

"What ever do you mean, old friend?"

"Do not pretend you do not understand. As children, I could see the way you looked at my brother. You loved him."

My eyes widened and my cheeks turned crimson, "Please, _please, _tell me you never spoke of this to him." There was no use in denying what Thor said, I had never been able to lie to Thor. Even as a little girl I had been in love with Loki. I had not seen him in years but I did not imagine my feelings would change. I had never been able to forget the young boy who had stolen my heart.

"Your secret will always be safe with me, old friend."

My embarrassment slowly slipped away, "Will I be able to see him?"

Thor took a deep breath, "I honestly can not say. A lot has changed since you left, he is not the Loki you once knew."

"Is he alright?" I grew worrisome rather quickly.

"He has become a troubled man and I am afraid I can not help him anymore."

"Thor, what has happened?" I questioned, "Please, tell me."

"I will, I promise, but at the moment you need to meet with my Father."

I had not realized we were standing outside The King's doors. I was suddenly nervous. The King had always frightened me as a child and I was sure he would still intimidate me now.

I glanced at Thor, "Will you escort me inside?"  
"Of course." He offered me his arm.

I took a deep breath as Thor pushed open the heavy, gold doors. The room was enormous; at the end of it I could see King Odin sitting in his gold chair with his wife, Queen Frigga, at his side.

When Thor and I reached the edge of the stair case where the King's chair sat, we bowed. I ripped off my hood as I fell to my knee.

"My King and Queen, it is an honor and a privilege to see you again." I said, still kneeling.

"Ember, my dear, you are still as beautiful as ever," Queen Frigga said, "It is lovely to see you again. Welcome home."

"Thank you, My Queen."

"I assume you have many questions , young Ember," The King finally spoke, cutting right to the chase. He had never been a man who enjoyed small talk, "I imagine you are curious as to why I have summoned you here."

"Yes, My King, I am," I said, finally rising to my feet, "But if I may be honest, I am more curious as to how you were able to find me."

King Odin laughed, "My dear Ember, I never lost you. I knew where you were going the night you were taken from your home."

"You knew where Ember had been all these years and yet, you still led me to believe she was dead?" Thor's voice shook the whole room.

"Be quiet, Thor," King Odin ordered, "Do not speak of things you do not understand."

Thor looked like he wanted to argue more but I silenced him with a pleading look.

"If you knew that I had left then you must have known the reason why, I presume?" I turned back to the King.

King Odin nodded, "Your Father came to me shortly before he died and confessed your abilities to me. I must admit I was rather impressed by what I had learned which is why I have requested your presence today. I believe your skills will be particularly useful for what I require."

"Abilities? What abilities?" Thor cried, "I demand that one of you tell me what is going on!"

The King shot Thor a glare but said, "It is Ember's secret to tell you if she wishes." He knew, as well as I did, that Thor would be stop demanding the truth. There was no use in trying to argue with someone as stubborn as Thor.

I realized, in that moment, that there was no way to avoid the truth. If The King needed me here because of my abilities then I needed to be honest with Thor. After all these years of being left in the dark, he deserved the truth.

"Magic runs in my father's family," I started to explain. I turned away from him too afraid of what his reaction might be, "Right before he died, he confessed to my mother what he was able to do, what I would someday be able to do. After he passed my mother sent me away afraid that we would be banished from Asgard if The King found out about my abilities. She believes that magic is only meant for the Gods," I paused for a brief second, "I left all those years ago because I have the ability to manipulate the elements."

It was deathly silent as The King, Queen, and I waited for Thor to speak.

"Your mother sent you away from Asgard because magic runs through your veins?" Thor's voice was menacing, "That is unacceptable! You were just a child, she had no right to force you to leave!"

Even under the circumstances I had to smile. Despite the fact that Thor had been lied to about where I was, he was still only concerned about my well-being. I knew without even having to discuss it with him that it did not bother him that I was of magic descent; he would still be my best friend.

I laid a soothing hand on Thor's arm, "It is alright, old friend, she sent me to a realm where they taught me how to control my powers. It has taken me many years to perfect my abilities.

"Which is why I requested your presence now," King Odin said, taking control of the situation again, "There is something I require of you if you think you are strong enough to handle it."

"Of course, sir," I said, "Anything."

"I need you to guard a very dangerous, very powerful prisoner. I believe your abilities are the only ones strong enough to contain him."

"Father, I do not think-" Thor began.

"Whatever you require, My King," I interrupted Thor, "I shall do."

"Ember…"

"Thank you, my dear," King Odin said, cutting off Thor again. Then he yelled, "Bring in the prisoner!"

Again, the gold doors swung open. I could hear the heavy chains that bound the prisoner together dragging across the floor.

"Brace yourself." Thor whispered.

Slowly, I turned around. I gasped at the prisoner. His wrists and ankles were bound together, a muzzle covering his mouth. His black hair and pale skin were the same as I remembered; his green eyes more piercing and fierce than the last time we were together. Under his mouth I could see the same smirk he always had as a child. He looked up at the King with disgust.

"Loki?" I whimpered, not believing my own eyes. His smirk vanished as soon as his eyes locked on mine, "_No._"

* * *

So, this is the first time I have ever written a Thor and Loki story. I'm sorry if they seem a little out of character, I am trying my best to not change them too much! My story picks up where Thor: The Dark World did and will follow some of the same events! I would love if everyone would read & review, the more feedback I get (good or bad!) the happier I'll be!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

The dungeon was dark, damp, and cold. Not at all a place for a lady. I briefly regretted my decision to help The King.

"Are you alright?" Thor whispered, "You look…paler than usual."

We were standing at the entrance of the dungeons staring at all the horrible creatures that were locked away. Loki's cell was the last one on the right.

"Of course." My voice broke. Whatever possessed The King to believe I could handle this was clearly mistaken.

"I know what you are thinking," Thor spoke quietly, "but you _can_ do this. Father would not have asked this of you if he believed you might fail. _I _would not let you do this if I believed you were in any real danger."

"After all these years you still read me like an open book," I gave him a soft smile, "what happened to the very dangerous, very powerful prisoner The King spoke of earlier?"

"I want to believe that underneath all that anger and rage, my brother is still in there," Thor said, "My hope- my mother and father's hope- is that you can bring him back."

I could hear and see the pain Thor was carrying. Family meant everything to him; Loki's betrayal hurt far worse than he would ever reveal.

"Thor…"

"Loki will not try and hurt you, I am certain of that," Thor said, defending his younger brother, "Please, Ember, he needs some goodness brought back into his life."

I could never have imagined that Loki would have grown up to become a prisoner in the realm his father ruled. For the first time I was afraid of my childhood companion. But looking at Thor, as he tried to mask his pain, I knew I could let him down.

I took a deep breath, "Wish me luck."

Gently, he cupped my cheek, "I will be forever in your debt."

"Let's just call it even." I said, referring to my absence.

He gave me a reassuring smile as I turned and marched towards Loki's cell. I kept my head held high and refused to look at the other prisoners as they banged on their cell walls and screamed at me.

Loki's back was to me as I approached his cell. I turned back to glance at Thor; he gave me a small wave before returning to the realm of the Palace.

Before I lost my nerve I unlocked Loki's cell and quickly climbed inside.

I was surprised at how nice the small space looked. There was a bed, a chair, a table, and a bookshelf. I knew immediately that it was the Queen's doing.

"I do not wish to be disturbed," Loki's voice was deeper than the last time I had seen him; he tried to sound menacing, "Leave me!" He refused to turn around.

I took a step closer, "Is that any way to speak to an old friend, Loki? Surely, The Queen has taught you some manners."

He turned around, smirking at me, "Manners have never really stuck with me; too many rules to follow. You say you are an old friend? You must not have been a very good one because I have no idea who you are."

I forced away the pain from the comment away. Thor was right; he was no longer the Loki I once knew, the Loki I had grown to love. He must be treated like a prisoner.

"Do not play games with me," I snapped, "You know very well who I am. Do not act like a fool, you are better than that."

He glared at me for a few minutes, not saying anything. I refused to drop my confidence and cower before him like I knew he wanted me to. Loki had always enjoyed being a leader; since he had never been able to boss Thor around, he settled for me instead.

"You have changed." He said simply.

"So have you."

The smirk was back. "Thor has told you what has become of me."

"He told me of your trip to Misgard. Your attempt to rule the human race." I told him. After Loki had been banished to the dungeon Thor had told me what Loki had done. I was furious, disgusted, almost, with him. I desperately wanted to believe that it was not true, that Loki was not capable of something so destructive. But looking at him, I saw no remorse, no regret for what he had done, and that fueled my anger even more, "They were lucky Thor and his new friends were there to intervene."

The smirk vanished. "The humans need to be ruled. They are not fit to lead themselves." He snarled.

"I do not believe that is for you decide," I said, "If you are that consumed with power why did you not ask The King to consider you for the throne?"

Loki's expression turned dark, "Thor has been keeping secrets from you."

"Maybe he wanted you to be the one tell me."

He scoffed, "I have nothing to share with you."

"That is fine but do not blame your brother for your mistakes," I said, "He has done nothing wrong."

Loki's eyes flashed pure rage, "He is _not _my brother."

I stopped. Thor and Loki always fought when they were younger but they never took it as far as to say they either hated each other or were no longer brothers. Loki would not say that unless it had some truth to it.

"What are you talking about?"

"My sweet Ember, you have truly been gone a long time. Everything has changed."

"Tell me, Loki, tell me what has changed."

"What don't you ask your precious Thor?" He spat at me.

"I do not want to hear it from Thor, I want to hear it from you." I said. When he did not answer, I added, "When we were young, you used to tell me everything."

For a brief moment I saw the old Loki. He looked sad, pained by the emotions he kept bottled up. Jealously had always been a part of Loki no matter how much he tried to deny it; he was tired of living in the shadow of Thor.

"We are no longer children."

"That does not mean I will not listen," I said, "You are my friend, Loki, I want to help you."

"I do not need your help." He growled.

"Tell me why he is not your brother," I demanded, ignoring his comment. Whether he liked it or not, I was going to try and help him, "I will not stop pestering you until you do." If Thor's approach worked earlier, I was hoping it would work now.

"That's hardly a threat." Loki noted, a small smile on his pale face, "But if you must know, it was revealed to me that I am not a son of Odin. My true heritage is of the Frost Giants. So, to answer your earlier question, I went looking for power on Misgard because I could never be King here." He spoke calmly but I could hear the anger laced in his words and the pain in his eyes.

I could not comprehend what Loki had said. Loki adopted? It was hard to fathom.

"How…how did you find out?"

"Thor led us into a battle against the Frost Giants, one of them tried to freeze me and was…unsuccessful. Apparently my true father had left me to die and Odin-out of the goodness of his heart- took me in." He said the last part with sarcasm.

As much as I did not want to admit it my heart went out to Loki. I wanted to help him. I wanted to take away his pain. I wanted to love him.

He was not the monster everyone else saw him for. He was lost, confused, betrayed…but not a monster.

"That does not mean that Thor is not your brother. That does not erase your childhood with him. It does not mean your family loves you any else."

"They are not my family." He hissed.

"Yes, they are. Thor loves you. He's hurt that you're pushing him away like this."

"Stop talking about Thor." He snarled.

"He only wants to help you, to protect you, from all of this. You're his little brother whether it is by blood or-"

"I said, stop!" Suddenly, Loki had me by the arms and threw me against the wall. My head smacked the concrete; my feet dangled a few inches off the ground, "I am so _sick_ of everyone always talking about Thor! Defending Thor, protecting Thor, taking Thor's side! I have had enough of it!"

"Loki, stop." I hissed.

He glared at me, "You did not stop."

I gritted my teeth from the pain. His grip on my arms got tighter, more painful. My head throbbed.

"Please." I groaned.

The smirk on his face told me he was not going to let go just because I asked nicely. He was going to make me beg for mercy.

I was not going to give him that satisfaction.

I closed my eyes and started focusing on my powers. I concentrated on my ability to create fire; I focused on the intensity of the heat, the burning sensation I would feel if there were actually flames licking at my skin. I opened my eyes to glare at Loki. Slowly, I could feel the temperature of my skin rising and I knew Loki could too. I knew the longer he held me the more he would feel the burn a regular fire could create. Finally, when the burning of flesh became too much for him, he dropped me.

"How the hell did you do that?" He cried, too shocked to be angry. I could see the burns already forming on his hands. I could see the pain he was trying to hide.

"Do not touch me again, Loki, I can do a lot more damage than just leaving blisters on your hands." And with that, I fled the prison cell.


End file.
